‘He's a freak of nature:' How did Jalen Carter get so good at blocking kicks?
He's a freak of nature:' How did Jalen Carter get so good at blocking kicks? originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
Jalen Carter is a heck of a pass rusher from the interior defensive line. We all know that. And he's a heck of a run stuffer. We've seen that since he got here. But his talents go way beyond that.
Carter has become one of the best kick blockers in the NFL, and we saw it again on Sunday, when he made one of the crucial plays in the Eagles' 13-12 win over the Bills, blocking Michael Badgley's PAT attempt following the Bills' first touchdown.
Without that play, the Bills would have had an opportunity to win the game with a PAT after their second touchdown. Instead, they tried a two-point conversation that failed.
I've never seen a get off like that from an interior alignment," Eagles special teams coach Michael Clay said Tuesday. The only person I could probably see that's blocked that many kicks in such a short period is Calais Campbell. But (for) him to get past the long snapper then get his hands up with his athletic ability is really awesome to see him right there."
Along with his block of a Joshua Karty field goal attempt in the win over the Rams, Carter is first Eagle to block two kicks in a season since 2017, when Derek Barnett blocked a Robbie Gould field goal in a win over the 49ers at the Linc and an Aldrick Rosas PAT in a win over the Giants at MetLife.
Carter also blocked a Tyler Bass field goal in the Eagles' win over the Bills at the Linc in 2023.
What goes into a 315-pound interior lineman being so proficient at blocking kicks? Is it instinct? Or can you be coached to be good at it?
I think it's a little bit of both," Clay said. Some guys just have a great feel for it and I think J.C. has a great feel for it. But, again, you could see how his mind works, him getting set, getting ready, kind of (anticipating) what the holder and the kicker are doing.
Obviously, we can't leave until that ball snaps so guys may try to go on a double set or things of that nature, try to get us off balance, but you can see he's keying that ball. Once that ball is snapped, he's out of there and he does a great job of really kind of bypassing the long snapper so we don't get the penalty, but also when you get past the long snapper, it's less of a guy pushing at your legs where I can get my legs up and go block it."
Those plays are also a great opportunity to really appreciate Carter's athleticism. He can flat-out sky.
Shoot, we've all seen that high school (basketball) video where he does the 360," Clay said. I am not worried about J.C.'s athletic ability. He's a freak of nature out there."
Along with Jordan Davis's game-saving block and touchdown return of Karty's 44-yard field goal attempt in the final seconds of that Rams game, Eagles interior linemen have now blocked a total of four kicks so far this year.
Clay said Davis and Carter, teammates at Georgia, best friends, former 1st-round picks, are both true students of the game who study opposing kicking operations to give them the best chance to make these plays.
They don't just happen. They're a product of lots of film study and preparation.
This is the first time since 2017 the Eagles have had at least three blocks in a season. During that championship season, in addition to Barnett's two blocks, Malcolm Jenkins and Patrick Robinson blocked field goals.
It's just all the work we go through and the scouting that we do," Clay said. Then I always get all the guys in here on Friday morning, we like to say, Find the fish,' or, Find the weak link,' in the protection and we were able to identify that and just them believing in the work.
I always tell them, I'd rather talk fly to you than lie to you.' And we found a chink in the armor for Buffalo right there."
Davis and Carter both come from Georgia, where Kirby Smart has always taught the importance of special teams and expects starters to not only contribute on teams but truly buy into it.
You don't make plays like Davis and Carter have without doing exactly that.
I think it's all kudos to the players in this building that we have," Clay said. They're trying to do anything they can to help win a game for this team. Regardless if it's a field goal block or (defense staying on the field) on punt return. They're all bought in to help this team in any way possible and it's just really cool to see coming to fruition in an important junction of the game, which it was.
And it just kind of lays the groundwork for all the young guys knowing a perennial superstar in Jalen Carter or Jordan Davis is going out there and changing the game on special teams. It just makes it more eager for everyone else."